State Rep. Wood convicted of 3rd OWI charge

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Portage — State Rep. Jeff Wood was convicted Monday of third-offense drunken driving and possession of drug paraphernalia and sentenced to 45 days in jail and more than $1,600 in fines.

The sentence came a day before members of the Assembly were expected to try to remove him from office for three arrests for driving under the influence in less than a year.

"I'm sorry for what I did and especially for putting people in danger on the highway," the Chippewa Falls independent told the court.

Wood, 40, pleaded no contest and was found guilty of third-offense drunken driving and paraphernalia possession in a deal that saw a charge of marijuana possession dropped.

Wood was convicted of drunken driving in 1991 and 1992.

He will begin serving his jail sentence Monday with work-release privileges. His fines came to $1,612.50. His driver's license will be revoked for 27 months, and for two years after that he will have to have an ignition interlock installed on any vehicle he drives. He also will have to go through a drug and alcohol assessment and treatment as part of his sentence.

The Legislature is slated to end its regular legislative session Thursday, before Wood reports to jail.

Columbia County Sheriff Dennis Richards said he would review Wood's work release request once he makes it and that he did not know if he would approve releasing Wood for meetings with constituents and the like.

Richards said Wood could not serve his sentence in home detention unless he had a residence in Columbia County, but noted Wood could ask to be transferred to Chippewa County, where he lives.

Wood faced a maximum penalty of 19 months in jail and $3,500 in fines if convicted on all charges, including the drug charge. Columbia County Circuit Judge Daniel George went along with the sentencing recommendation of District Attorney Jane Kohlwey.

"He was treated just like anybody else would be," Kohlwey said.

Wood is also fighting charges of driving under the influence of prescription drugs in Marathon and Monroe counties.

Rep. Steve Nass (R-Whitewater) filed a resolution in October to eject Wood from the Assembly because of the charges. Wood tried to force a vote on the resolution last week - at a time when Nass was absent because his mother had just died - but Republicans blocked the effort, saying Nass should be there, and it shouldn't be addressed in the middle of the night.

Expulsion vote possible

Other legislators plan to request a vote on his expulsion Tuesday. A two-thirds vote would be required to remove him, but many Democrats argue they should instead reprimand or censure him, which requires a simple majority.

Wood argues the Legislature does not have the power to remove him for conduct that occurred outside of his official duties. The state Legislature has removed a lawmaker only once before, in 1917.

Wood was elected in 2002 as a Republican but quit the party in 2008 and ran for re-election as an independent. In December 2008, a month after being re-elected, he was arrested along I-39/90/94 after a State Patrol officer found him urinating along the side of the highway. He had a blood-alcohol level of 0.15, nearly double the legal limit for driving of 0.08.

He has said he decided to drive home to Chippewa County after drinking at a bar with friends and accepting a bag of marijuana and a pipe someone gave him.

He was arrested in Marathon County in September 2009 and Monroe County in October 2009 for driving under the influence of drugs. He also was charged with bail jumping in Monroe County for violating the terms of his bail in Columbia County.

The Marathon and Monroe county cases are pending.

Wood told an Assembly committee that reviewed expelling him that he had battled alcohol abuse on and off for years and began drinking heavily during his 2008 campaign. He said he has now received treatment and is sober and blames his two most recent arrests on bad reactions to prescription drugs.

The panel split in March on what to do, with the three Republicans voting for expulsion and the three Democrats voting for a reprimand.

Wood told the judge Monday he hadn't had a drink in nine months and hadn't taken prescription drugs for six months.

"I plan on staying sober," he said. "It has been a really trying time for my family with the media and the public spotlight, especially (for) my kids, with reporters showing up on my door. I just want to do what's best (and) take responsibility for what I did and try to put this behind me."

About Patrick Marley

Patrick Marley covers state government and state politics. He is the author, with Journal Sentinel reporter Jason Stein, of "More Than They Bargained For: Scott Walker, Unions and the Fight for Wisconsin.”